His Stripper: A Ronald Knox Love Story
by Anime-Doll-93
Summary: Earl Ciel Phantomhive and his faithful butler are assigned by the Queen to investigate a shady club aboard the doomed Campania. Meanwhile, attractive Shinigami flirt Ronald Knox makes his debut to rid the ship of passengers ready to enter Death's door just in time to party...but the assignment involves more than he bargained for.
1. Introduction

The luxury line _Campania_ was beginning its maiden voyage with its thousands of first-class passengers hungry for equally classy entertainment and cuisine. However, few passengers knew of a hidden strip club on the second-class deck. This was the next target of London's notorious Shinigami, one of whom would find himself in a situation that involved a lot more than he bargained for. Worst of all for him, it may or may not cost this Shinigami the dreaded "overtime."

In this provocative strip club named "Shades of Desire," female strippers danced erotically to equally adult music on their respective poles. The dollars they earned from their almost well behaved male admirers were stowed in a garter strap against their slender thighs. Despite not many men knowing of this slinky, lust-infested club, word spread privately yet rapidly through regular attendees. These regulars then swore newcomers into secrecy upon entering the establishment.


	2. Chapter 1: On The Run

The Queen's Watchdog, Ciel Phantomhive, and his demon butler, Sebastian Michaelis, were naturally among the _Campania's_ passengers. He joined his fiancée Elizabeth Middleford both for the sake of her satisfaction and to keep an eye out for any suspicious activity, especially if such activity involved this mysterious club. Surely, anything with "shade" in its title begged suspicion. When Lord Phantomhive was neither in Elizabeth nor her family's presence, he inquired what kind of club "Shades of Desire" was. Of course, Sebastian couldn't help but find dark humor in the whole thing. "From what I've gathered through 'overhearing' various conversations, My Lord," the demon began, unable to resist a smirk, "is that this place is supposed to be a 'secret' club."

"Secret club, eh? How childish," Lord Phantomhive huffed in annoyance. He picked up the cup again and took another sip of his favorite Earl Grey tea.

"Well, I don't suppose you would consider a stripper's club 'childish,' would you?" Poor Lord Phantomhive nearly spewed the tea into his butler's face at Sebastian's matter-of-fact question!

"Stripper's club?! What the hell kind of joke are you…?"

"It isn't a joke, Young Master. I told you I heard it myself." Ciel sank his face into his hands in dread and frustration.

"Oh, fuck me, dammit!"

"If you ask nicely, I'm certain the strippers can take care of that," Sebastian chuckled.

"SHUT UP!" Ciel blushed furiously. "I couldn't possibly…"

"But would the Queen not want you to take care of it?" Ciel bit his lip. He never saw – in his whole life – or felt comfortable seeing a woman in her unmentionables.

"Are you implying someone like _me_ go to that damned sinful place with those filthy low-brow hooligans?" Sebastian let out a low chuckle.

"In all due respect, My Lord…considering how you signed a contract with the devil, I highly doubt there is anything more sin-ridden than that."

"Hmph! Well, you must know that, despite this mission, I certainly do not plan to pursue such an adventure in the future!" The demon butler nodded in acknowledgment.

"Of course, Young Master, considering your betrothal to Lady Elizabeth."

"Regardless of that arrangement, I would not attend!" Then Lord Phantomhive crossed his arms. "But I'm assuming you are eager to witness those women degrade themselves for your pleasure?" Sebastian inwardly rolled his eyes at such an absurd accusation.

"Certainly not. As I said, I have no interest in such materialistic things." Earl Phantomhive rolled his eyes.

"Anyway," the Earl continued, "the sooner I investigate this god-awful place, the better." His cheeks still gave off a considerably dark shade of pink. Sebastian smiled pleasantly as usual as he dressed Ciel in his black cloak and dawned the matching top hat onto his head.

"Very good, Young Master."

"Whatever. Let us go."

To avoid harassment, the Earl and butler discretely followed other club-goers to their destination. However, they were stopped at the club entrance by a surprisingly tastefully dressed guard.

"You lost, kid?" he glared down at the Phantomhive boy. Ciel scowled.

"As the Queen's Watchdog, I certainly am not. I am merely here to ask your…employees and, er…customers a few questions." The guard laughed.

"The hell you are! Feeling adventurous to see women's' titties tonight? Being a Friday, these babes are extra hot and ready to get some…" Ciel growled with cheeks flaming both from anger and embarrassment.

"How dare you use that sort of language with me! Step aside or else!" He poked the guard in the chest with his cane.

"Or what, shrimp? You're just a little punk who seems in need of good pussy!" Before he could push the young Earl away, Sebastian flipped the guard's entire body to the ground with a single flick of the index finger to the man's forehead.

"Or _I_ deal with you single-handedly in front of everyone," Sebastian threatened calmly with raised a brow and wicked smirk, at the same time giving his deadliest glare and adjusting his gloves. "Surely, you don't want to expose your bloodied innards to such delicate female eyes, do you?" He stepped forward. The guard freaked and yelled at him to stay away as he shakily granted them entrance.

"Thank you," Sebastian smiled sweetly. The guard didn't respond but stood there frozen in place.

Meanwhile, the pair strolled among and closely studied the club's "customers" while trying to avoid eye contact with and gawking at the sexy dancers. Yet Sebastian often snuck a glance or two at one particular stripper that seemed the most popular. Possessing a sleek figure like the others, the only differences were her outfit and cash load. She wore a black costume diamond-encrusted corset, matching silver-rimmed short skirt and side garters that held up silver-laced, fishnet stockings. On her feet were black, glittery, sexy heels with straps across the ankle. The ensemble possessed so much dazzling shine that the girl could've been mistaken for a human disco ball! Perhaps, among other things, _that_ was what drew in more onlookers. Her shoulder blade-length, chocolate-brown hair was also lightly curled with the top layer gracefully pulled back with a simple silver hairclip. Finally, her envy-green eyes were embroidered with a kinky masquerade-type mask…but Sebastian could immediately tell that they frequented between green and blood red.

 _Is she…? No. Could she be a demon as well?_ The butler thought to himself. _But how…?_

"So, demon, I see you are liking my beautiful women dancers," a vaguely familiar Italian accent suddenly sounded behind him. Sebastian and Ciel turned to find the once-thought-deceased Azzuro Vanel standing proudly, a smoking cigar in his mouth like when they first met. He called to the popular stripper. "Clara, love, come and meet our newest attendees." The woman glanced over and grinned before gracefully hopping off her platform and sauntering over.

"Here is my contribution, darling," she cooed, handing him the money.

"Ah, absolutely lovely." He kissed her on the forehead, making her giggle flirtatiously. Ciel glared.

"I thought we killed you!" he exclaimed. Vanel huffed.

"Oh, I beg to differ, little Phantomhive," he cockily disagreed, "a certain angel came to my rescue soon after you departed the scene." He wrapped a wickedly affectionate arm around Clara. She giggled and nestled up to the Italian man. "Now I am more successful than I could ever be! So, really…I should be thanking you." Sebastian and Ciel raised scornful brows.

Just then, Sebastian noticed a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye. It was another young woman with brown hair and green eyes. Her bangs were flipped to either side of her seemingly gentle face. The outfit she wore was a plain blue-gray dress with a red border. She wore a necklace with a familiar occult symbol… _Oh my God, it's her! That nun that I seduced for Intel months ago!_ Sebastian gasped, his eyes widening in shock and partial horror. The woman, Mathilda Simmons, did not see him. Only Clara appeared to be in her line of sight. However, despite his shock, Sebastian couldn't figure out why…

Suddenly, a woman's bloodcurdling scream sounded from outside the establishment. People were scrambling away in horror from what appeared to be blindfolded, gurgling undead passengers! Everything was immediately brought to a halt in "Shades of Desire;" this stillness was shortly replaced by a flurry of panic amongst stripper and horny man alike.

"W-Who in the hell are th-those bastards?!" Vanel yelled, hugging his beloved stripper to his side protectively. Ciel backed away toward Sebastian.

"Dolls…" he muttered. Sebastian elaborated without skipping a beat.

"Those are the Bizarre Dolls! Some supernatural force has awoken the dead!" As "dead" left his lips, customers and strippers – with the exception of Clara and Mathilda – dashed for the door only to be taken by passing Dolls in their haste. Only some of the strippers narrowly avoided bloodshed via the venomous bite of the zombies. Armed with forks and knives, Sebastian quickly set out to defend the survivors. Without thinking, Azzuro began to hightail it as well.


	3. Chapter 2: Ronald To The Rescue!

Unfortunately, Vanel was ripped apart by a supernatural lawnmower with an attractive blonde-black-haired man attached to it; ironically, the mower-wielding man was also attempting to defend the survivors from the undead onslaught…just so he could take care of those destined to die on his own. "VANEL!" Clara screamed, wringing her hands near her still-masked face. The half-blonde man glanced up at his more or less doomed audience.

"Oh," he uttered, laying his Shinigami-green eyes upon the now helpless Clara. "Well, hello there, sweetheart," he smiled, striding confidently over to her. "Where have you been hiding all my life?" Without missing a beat, he whipped out his business card to show her. "The name's Ronald Knox, the next die-hard Reaper!" He flashed everyone a seemingly sweet smile – especially Clara – while swinging up two reverse Rock-On hand signs. "And you…" he tugged Clara's arm close, "must be the lone angel among these devils." Clara blushed brightly as the Reaper took her hand and gave it a long kiss.

"I-I don't…um…I-I'm afraid this is not the time n-nor place, Mr. Knox." Clara slipped her hand out of the Shinigami's grasp and stepped back.

"Nonsense, sweet tea," Ronald winked, "What better time to get to know each other than the time I will efficiently spend protecting a beautiful maiden like you?" The young Shinigami's lawnmower roared to life once again and he swung it to and fro, the motion gracefully beheading zombies that dared approach the woman or the Earl. _VRROOM!_ went his weapon, _BZZZZZZ!_ He was literally mowing down the competition! It was difficult for poor Clara to watch the gore fest, but she quickly became enchanted by the Reaper in action. _What marvelous skill!_ she thought.

Eventually, Sebastian returned to find Ronald, one hand on the wall beside the girl and the other on his idle Scythe, allegedly flirting with Clara. "Besides," he was saying, "it's not right to leave a gorgeous creature like you helpless, yes?" Clara started giggling, her cheeks turning bright pink.

"I suppose not," she replied shyly. Sebastian huffed exasperatedly.

"Would you desist already? I don't think you have any idea who you're dealing with." The Shinigami glanced at him.

"What are you talking about, Demon? A fine, lovely young woman such as her must not fraternize among these undead." Then he turned back to Clara. "So tell me, darling, where did such a sexy angel like you fall from, eh?" Ronald's black-rimmed glasses shined mischievously. _Though a bit excessive, his pickup lines aren't too bad; they certainly beat those of the other men in this club who attempted to court me,_ she thought.

"I don't think you would like it if I told you," looking at him coyly through her eyelashes, "for you see, this very club has been – or, was – my home. I've worked here under the protection of the man that…well," slightly glaring at the suave Shinigami, "you just killed." Ronald was taken aback by this news.

"OH!" _Damn…this is awkward._ He internally face-palmed while externally rubbing the back of his head. "Uh…my apologies miss. I didn't know the exact situation. But," slyly wrapping a gentle arm around Clara's slender waist, "you are welcome to stay with me until we figure something else out." Sebastian glared daggers at the young Shinigami.

"Don't be disgusting. You're probably a thousand times older than her."

"No way!" Ronald retorted without missing a beat, "I'm young, so I get away with plenty." He turned back to Clara. "Now, what say you come with me, gorgeous? I will treat you like you deserve. If you will have me, of course."


	4. Chapter 3: Revelations

Before Clara could respond, another woman screamed: Mathilda. Several Dolls suddenly ripped down the corner wall and eagerly devoured her! Clara screamed at the horrific sight, feebly attempting to cover her still-masked eyes. Ronald and Sebastian cursed under their breathes, but the Shinigami was the one to make a move; taking control of his Scythe once more, he slayed those Dolls in half, thirds and even quarters. Clara was frozen in paralyzing fear during the bloodbath. "N-No," she muttered shakily, "NOO!" In that moment, life rapidly drained from the partially eaten woman. Her innards were left spread about, eyes wide-open and crying blood, mouth agape with more blood streaks cascading down to her chin.

When she finally mustered up the courage to stomach the horror up close, Clara ran to the corpse and shivered in disgust while taking it in her arms. "No…Mother, no…please don't leave me!" The woman who gave birth to her alone, raised her by herself before disappearing for years, was gone.

"MOTHER?!" Everyone else exclaimed in unison. Clara ignored their shock as she wept pathetically in mourning over the loss of her mother.

"NO, PLEASE NO!" she was sobbing. Earl, demon and Shinigami looked on sadly. Ciel couldn't help but shed a tear or two upon remembering his own parents' untimely demise, but quickly wiped them away. Before he could approach the girl and give his condolences, Ronald Knox was already at her side; an action that made Ciel glare daggers into his back. _There is no sympathy possible in the cold soul of a Reaper!_ he thought disgustedly.

Typically, this was true…but not for Ronald.

"Hey, now, sweetheart," he murmured comfortingly, not hesitating to wrap his arms around the grief-stricken girl's waist. "Shhh…it will be okay." His scent filled Clara's nostrils, and only then did she realize whose arms cradled her so affectionately. But she refused to set the dead woman down in favor of returning the gesture. "Come, precious…there is nothing we can do now." He set a hand on the corpse. "All we can do is let her rest in peace." With great reluctance after a few more gentle coaxes, Clara gently set Mathilda's now rotting corpse down on the grimy floor and turned to Ronald; wrapping her arms around him, she cried her heart out into his shoulder. In response, Ronald stroked her hair and back as comfortingly as he could. He found it strange that she was significantly more distraught over this one measly woman as opposed to her beloved Vanel, who was also – though unintentionally – murdered in front of her very eyes. He sighed deeply, inhaling her scent: honeysuckle and jasmine. His own once-frosty heart began to ache for some mysterious reason. _W-What is this strange emotion coming over me? We Shinigami are not supposed to feel at all after a death; and yet…this one was in fact not my doing._ He embraced the girl closer; her racking sobs causing him to nearly lose balance on his knees. _Whore and all,_ he continued, _this poor innocent girl with supposedly nowhere else to go is grief-stricken far more than I can comprehend. Damn, Sutcliff-Senpai is going to hate me if I help her!_

"No," Clara quietly responded as her sobs died down, "It won't be okay. I've lost the only parent I ever knew." Bewildered, both butler and Earl made their way over to the embracing pair.

Ciel was the first to question her. "What do you mean, Miss Clara?" The sight of her teary, visibly pained eyes when they locked with his was enough to make his heart break.

"My mother never really spoke of my father unless I asked her." She sat up slightly out of the Shinigami's arms. "Since I was a child at the time, she thought it would be best to describe him in poem. Therefore, I remember it to this day perfectly."

Then Sebastian made a suggestion. "Perhaps we can trace your father's whereabouts. If it's not too much trouble, would you be so kind as to recite this little poem for the Young Master and myself?" Clara glanced from Earl Phantomhive to the tall slender demon and her eyes grew wide. A sharp gasp escaped her mouth upon closer inspection of his features. Sebastian raised a brow. As if in a trance, Clara slowly rose to her feet. As she sauntered toward him, the words of the poem came out of her mouth almost robotically.

 _Eyes red as blood, hair dark as night,_

 _A handsome and pale man_

 _Who serves his young master's every plight._

 _Tall in height and dressed in butler's clothes,_

 _His mere glance could melt you_

 _Like the sight of a rose._

"It's…you," she stated almost breathlessly. Despite her leftover tears, Clara managed the smallest of smiles. "Daddy." As the word left her lips, her enchanting irises turned from the purest green to the most sinister red. Everyone turned to Sebastian and gawked.

 **"** Se-Sebastian, is she really…y-your…?" Ciel sputtered. Sebastian stiffened, blushing. _I h-have a…daughter?_

"Oh, fuck no!" Ronald muttered sourly, quiet enough so no one else would hear.


End file.
